Indoor positioning system for fire alarm system

ABSTRACT

A building management system tracks occupants of a building in which the building management system is installed and presents information about the occupants, including location information, to first responders during emergency and/or training events. Distributed devices of the building management system receive identification information broadcast by user devices of the occupants and sends the identification information to a control panel of the building management system. Location information for the occupants is generated based on the identification information received from the user devices and stored along with time and date information. This location information is then retrieved and presented to first responders, for example, by displaying a map of the building with icons representing the distributed devices and occupants, based on the location information.

RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a Continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.15/953,627, filed on Apr. 16, 2018, issued on Feb. 18, 2020 as U.S. Pat.No. 10,565,859, which is incorporated herein by reference in itsentirety.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Building management systems such as building automation systems, firealarm systems and intrusion systems are often installed within premisessuch as commercial, residential, or governmental buildings. Examples ofthese buildings include offices, hospitals, warehouses, publicinfrastructure buildings including subways and bus terminals, multi-unitdwellings, schools or universities, shopping malls, government offices,and casinos.

Fire alarm systems typically include fire control panels that functionas system controllers and distributed devices positioned throughout thebuildings and connected to the panels. Some examples of distributeddevices include fire detection/initiation devices such as smokedetectors, carbon monoxide detectors, flame detectors, temperaturesensors, and/or pull stations (also known as manual call points), andfire notification devices such as speakers, sounders, horns, bells,chimes, light emitting diode (LED) reader boards, and/or flashing lights(e.g., strobes).

The fire detection devices monitor the buildings for indicators of fire.Upon detection of an indicator of fire such as smoke or heat or flames,the distributed device is activated and a signal is sent from theactivated distributed device to the fire control panel. The fire controlpanel then initiates an alarm condition by activating audio and visiblealarms of the fire notification devices of the fire alarm system, whichare also distributed around the building. Additionally, the fire controlpanel will also send an alarm signal to a monitoring station, which willnotify the local fire department or fire brigade. In response to a firealarm, occupants of the building are often trained and expected toevacuate to a designated safe location, or rally point.

Recently, it has been proposed to use connected services systems tomonitor fire alarm systems. Connected services systems are remotesystems that communicate with the building management systems and aresometimes administered by separate business entities than the ownersand/or occupants of the buildings, which contain the buildingmanagements systems. For example, the connected services system can beadministered by a building management system manufacturer and/or anentity providing service on the building management systems.

At the same time, occupants of these buildings commonly possesswireless-enabled user devices such as mobile computing devices (e.g.smart phones, tablets, laptops, and/or smart watches), or evenidentification badges for access control systems, which wirelesslycommunicate with other devices using, for example, Bluetooth technologyprotocols such as Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE). During normal operation,many of these user devices wirelessly broadcast unique identificationinformation such as serial numbers, media access control (MAC) addressesand/or universally unique identifiers (UUID) in order to facilitateestablishing personal area networks (PAN), for example, with the otherdevices.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

During fire alarm events, it is common for companies or buildingmanagement entities to have designated individuals that manage rallypoints during evacuations. The building occupants will typically beinstructed to meet at one or several of these rally points around thebuilding. By taking a count of occupants at the rally points, it ispossible for the designated individuals to provide information to firstresponders concerning individuals still possibly trapped in thebuilding.

It remains difficult or impossible, however, to count the number ofindividuals remaining inside the building or to determine the locationof individuals who have not been counted at one of the rally points. Asa result, individuals in danger cannot be quickly located.

The present invention can be used to increase the speed by whichindividuals at rally points are counted and individuals in danger arelocated. Thus, first responders can efficiently execute rescueoperations. It can utilize existing sensor networks of a fire alarmsystems, for example, by adding sensors, such as BLE receivers and/orRFID readers, for detecting wireless-enabled user devices carried byoccupants of the building. By detecting wireless signals emitted bythese devices and applying algorithms to create an indoor positioningsystem, individuals can be located with enough accuracy to improve theresponse time of emergency services. User devices carried by occupantsof the building (e.g. access cards, mobile phones) periodicallybroadcast signals containing identification information. Using theidentification information and signal strength received by each sensor,positions of occupants are calculated and provided to emergencyservices.

In general, according to one aspect, the invention features a buildingmanagement system for a premises, including distributed devices and acontrol panel. The distributed devices comprise wireless receivers forreceiving broadcast identification information from user devices. Thecontrol panel generates location information based on the identificationinformation received by the distributed devices and presents thelocation information for first responders on one or more displays.

In embodiments, the building management system is a fire alarm,security, building automation and/or access control system, and the userdevices include mobile computing devices, identification badges, and/orwearable beacons. One or more distributed devices are positioned atpredetermined rally points of the premises where occupants of thepremises are instructed and/or expected to meet during emergency and/ortraining events, and the control panel presents for first respondersrally status information for the emergency and/or training events.Location information for users of the user devices is generated bymatching location information associated with the distributed devicesthat received the broadcast identification information with userinformation associated with the identification information. The one ormore displays include displays that are integral with the control paneland/or displays of computing devices connected to the buildingmanagement system via a connected services system. The control panelpresents the location information by displaying a map of the premiseswith graphical elements representing users of the user devices overlaidon the map in different positions with respect to the map based on thelocation information. In addition to the location information, thecontrol panel can also present first responders with user informationassociated with users of the user devices.

In general, according to another aspect, the invention features a methodof operation of a building management system for a premises. Distributeddevices of the building management system receive broadcastidentification information from user devices via wireless receivers ofthe distributed devices. Location information is then generated based onthe identification information received by the distributed devices andpresented for first responders on one or more displays.

The above and other features of the invention including various noveldetails of construction and combinations of parts, and other advantages,will now be more particularly described with reference to theaccompanying drawings and pointed out in the claims. It will beunderstood that the particular method and device embodying the inventionare shown by way of illustration and not as a limitation of theinvention. The principles and features of this invention may be employedin various and numerous embodiments without departing from the scope ofthe invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In the accompanying drawings, reference characters refer to the sameparts throughout the different views. The drawings are not necessarilyto scale; emphasis has instead been placed upon illustrating theprinciples of the invention. Of the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a building management system accordingto an embodiment of the current invention;

FIG. 2A is a schematic diagram of an exemplary control panel,distributed device and user device, according to a first embodiment ofthe present invention;

FIG. 2B is a schematic diagram of an exemplary control panel,distributed device and user device, according to a second embodiment ofthe present invention;

FIG. 2C is a schematic diagram of an exemplary control panel,distributed device and user device, according to a third embodiment ofthe present invention;

FIG. 2D is a schematic diagram of an exemplary control panel,distributed device and user device, according to a fourth embodiment ofthe present invention;

FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram showing an exemplary connected servicesdatabase and human resources management system;

FIG. 4 is a sequence diagram illustrating an exemplary process by whichthe building management system tracks locations of occupants of thebuilding and provides location information for the occupants to firstresponders;

FIG. 5 is an illustration of an exemplary user tracking pane ofgraphical user interface (e.g. rendered on a touchscreen display of thecontrol panel of the building management system); and

FIG. 6 is an illustration of the user tracking pane showing how userinformation pertaining to the occupants of the building is displayed inresponse to selection of occupant icons.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

The invention now will be described more fully hereinafter withreference to the accompanying drawings, in which illustrativeembodiments of the invention are shown. This invention may, however, beembodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limitedto the embodiments set forth herein; rather, these embodiments areprovided so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete, and willfully convey the scope of the invention to those skilled in the art.

As used herein, the term “and/or” includes any and all combinations ofone or more of the associated listed items. Further, the singular formsand the articles “a”, “an” and “the” are intended to include the pluralforms as well, unless expressly stated otherwise. It will be furtherunderstood that the terms: includes, comprises, including and/orcomprising, when used in this specification, specify the presence ofstated features, integers, steps, operations, elements, and/orcomponents, but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or moreother features, integers, steps, operations, elements, components,and/or groups thereof. Further, it will be understood that when anelement, including component or subsystem, is referred to and/or shownas being connected or coupled to another element, it can be directlyconnected or coupled to the other element or intervening elements may bepresent.

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a building management system 100according to an embodiment of the current invention.

The building management system 100 is installed at a premises such as abuilding 103. Examples of the buildings include offices, hospitals,warehouses, retail establishments, shopping malls, schools, multi-unitdwellings, government buildings, or casinos, to list a few examples.

Occupants 150 of the building 103 are individuals who might be locatedanywhere in the building 103 during a normal course of business,including employees of entities occupying the building 103, residents,or visitors, among other examples. The occupants 150 carrywireless-enabled user devices 152, which wirelessly communicate withother devices using, for example, Bluetooth technology protocols such asBluetooth Low Energy (BLE). During normal operation, the user devices152 wirelessly broadcast identification (ID) information such as serialnumbers, media access control (MAC) addresses and/or universally uniqueidentifiers (UUID) in order to facilitate establishing personal areanetworks (PAN) with the other devices. The user devices 152 can includemobile computing devices 152-2, 152-5 such as laptop computers, tabletcomputers, phablet computers (i.e., a mobile device that is typicallylarger than a smart phone, but smaller than a tablet), smart watches, tolist a few examples. The user devices can also include ID badges 152-1,152-4 for access control systems, which are cards or tags that transmitID information to access control readers of access control systems inorder to validate entry of occupants 150 through access points of theaccess control system into restricted areas of the building 103.

During emergency and/or training events, which might include anemergency situation or a training event for occupants 150 for how torespond during an emergency, occupants 150 of the building 103 aretrained and/or expected to meet at designated rally points, which mightbe, for example, designated outdoor safe areas a safe distance from thebuilding 103.

On the other hand, first responders 160 are individuals to whominformation about occupants 150 is presented during the emergency and/ortraining events. The first responders 160 can include emergency servicespersonnel such as emergency medical technicians, police officers firefighters, employees of entities occupying the building 103, propertymanagers, building management system manufacturers and/or providers ofservice for building management systems. In general, first responders160 access the information about the occupants 150 via components of thebuilding management system 100 and/or computing devices 162 connected toor in communication with the building management system 100. In general,these first responder computing devices 162 can include mobile computingdevices or other computing devices with network connectivity to thebuilding management system 100.

In general, the building management system 100 includes a control panel116 and distributed devices 130. The control panel 116 directs thefunction of the building management system 100 by determining anddisplaying the operational status of or sensor data from the distributeddevices 130 or sending instructions to the distributed devices 130 toperform a function of the building management system 100, among otherexamples. The distributed devices 130 also receive, via wirelessreceivers, the broadcast ID information from the user devices 152 andsend the broadcast ID information to the control panel 116 and/or theconnected services server 104, which generates location information forthe occupants 150 using the user devices 152 based on the broadcast IDinformation. This location information represents the current positionof the occupant 150 within the building 103.

The distributed devices 130 are connected to the control panel 116 via asafety and security wired and/or wireless network 111 of the building103. These networks 111 support data and/or analog communication betweenthe distributed devices 130 and the control panel 116.

In the illustrated example, distributed devices 130 of a fire alarmsystem 100 are connected to a fire alarm system control panel 116 viathe safety and security network 111 and are slave devices of the panel.

The distributed fire alarm devices 130 include alarm initiation devicesincluding smoke detectors 130-2, 130-4, 130-9, 130-12 and manuallyactivated devices such as call points 130-6 and pull stations 130-8.Alarm initiation devices can also include devices that are not depictedin the illustrated example, including carbon monoxide detectors and heatdetectors, to list a few examples. The alarm initiation devices monitorthe buildings for indicators of fire. Upon detection of indicators offire, device signals are sent from the alarm initiating devices to thecontrol panel 116. The device signals are typically alarm signals and/oranalog values. The alarm signals are used to signal the control panel116 that a fire has been detected. Alternatively, some devices provideanalog values to indicate measured conditions. In one example,temperature sensors provide analog values for measured temperatures. Inanother example, smoke sensors provide analog values indicating smokeobscuration levels. The control panel 116 then determines if the analogvalues are indicative of a fire. Additionally, in some examples, thealarm initiation devices provide both alarm signals and analog values.

The distributed fire alarm devices 130 further include fire notificationdevices, which notify occupants of the building 103 of a potential fireand generally include sounders 130-3, 130-5, 130-10, 130-11, which mightinclude speakers, horns, bells, and/or chimes, and flashing lights(e.g., strobes) 130-1, 130-7. Alarm notification devices can alsoinclude devices that are not depicted in the illustrated example,including light emitting diode (LED) reader boards, to list one example.In response to detection of indicators of fire, the fire alarm systemcontrol panel 116 initiates an alarm state, which activates the firenotification devices.

The distributed devices 130 also include a rally point receiver 130-13,which is a device positioned at a designated rally point where occupants150 of the building 103 are trained and/or expected to meet during theemergency and/or training events.

The present system can be extended to other types of building managementsystems 100. For example in another implementation the panel is anintrusion panel such as a panel that might control a security system, ora building automation panel such as a panel that might control buildingclimate including HVAC.

The building management system 100 also preferably includes a connectedservices system 102, which, at a high level, communicates with buildingmanagement systems 100 installed within buildings 103 of various cliententities, typically. Examples of client entities include residential,commercial, or governmental companies or agencies.

The control panel 116 and the first responder computing devices 162operated by first responders 160 are connected to the connected servicessystem 102 via a cellular provider network, private network and/orpublic network 114, such as the internet. In some cases, the controlpanels 116 have been given network connectivity to communicate with theconnected services system 102; in other cases, computers connected tothe control panels 116 function as gateways. The first responder mobilecomputing device 162-2 connects to the public network 114 via a wirelesscommunication link 170 to a cellular radio tower 172 of a mobilebroadband or cellular network or public and/or private wired datanetworks such as an enterprise network, Wi-Max, or Wi-Fi network, forexample.

The connected services system 102 is typically implemented as a cloudsystem. It can be run on a proprietary cloud system or implemented onone of the popular cloud systems operated by vendors such as AlphabetInc., Amazon, Inc. (AWS), or Microsoft Corporation.

As a result, the connected services system 102 typically operates on aconnected services server system 104. In some cases, this server system104 is one or more dedicated servers. In other examples, they arevirtual servers.

The connected services server system 104 executes a number of separatemodules associated with separate tasks. In some cases, these modules arediscrete modules or they are combined with other modules into a unifiedcode base. They can be running on the same server or different servers,virtualized server system or a distributed computing system. Theconnected services server 104 also generally functions as an applicationserver that communicates with the computing devices 162 operated by thefirst responders 160 and/or the control panel 116 to present informationabout the occupants 150 of the building 103 during emergency and/ortraining events.

The connected services system 102 also includes a building managementsystem interface 112. The building management system interface 112operates as the interface between the connected services system 102 andthe control panel 116. In particular, the building management systeminterface 112 converts instructions from the connected services system102 into instructions that are formatted into the protocol implementedby the particular panel. Additionally, the building management systeminterface 112 receives information, for example, from the currentcontrol panel 116 or distributed devices 130 and converts theinformation into a uniform format regardless of the underlying protocolimplemented by the panels and distributed devices.

The connected services system 102 includes a connected servicesdatabase, which maintains information about devices of the buildingmanagement system 100 and the building 103. In particular, the connectedservices database 106 includes lists of distributed devices 130installed at various customer premises along with location informationassociated with the devices representing the devices' position withinthe building 103, for example, with respect to a map depicting a layoutof the building 103.

On the other hand, a human resource management system 108 of theconnected services system 102 maintains information about the occupants150 of the building 103.

In general, location information for the occupants 150 of the building103 is generated based on location information for the distributeddevices 130 retrieved from the connected services database 106. Thislocation information for the occupants 150 is stored in the humanresource management system 108 along with time information (such as atimestamp indicating the current date and time). During emergency and/ortraining events, this location information for the occupants 150 isaccessed and presented, for example, via a user tracking pane 124, whichindicates information including location information for the occupants150 of the building 103. The user tracking pane 124 is generally ascreen or component of a graphical user interface (GUI) rendered on adisplay of the control panel 116, or first responder computing devices162.

In the illustrated example, occupant 150-1, carries an ID badge 152-1,which broadcasts ID information that is received by a nearby smokedetector 130-3 and sounder 130-3. Occupant 150-2, carries mobilecomputing device 152-2, which broadcasts ID information that is receivedby a nearby smoke detector 130-9 and strobe 130-7. Occupant 150-3, wearsa wireless beacon 152-3, which broadcasts ID information that isreceived by a nearby smoke detector 130-12 and sounder 130-11. Occupants150-4 and 150-5 stand near a rally point equipped with a rally pointreceiver 130-13. Occupant 150-4 carries an ID badge 152-4, and occupant150-5 wears a smart watch 152-5, both of which broadcast ID informationthat is received by the rally point receiver 130-13. First responder160-1 is presented with occupant information via the user tracking pane124-1 of the control panel 116, while first responder 160-2 is presentedwith occupant information via the user tracking pane 124-2 of the firstresponder mobile computing device 162-2.

FIG. 2A is a schematic diagram showing an exemplary control panel 116,distributed device 130 and user device 152, according to one embodimentof the present invention.

The user device 152 includes a controller 224, a wireless transmitter220 and an antenna 222 along with potentially other components that arenot illustrated (such as in the example of a smart phone or smartwatch). The controller 224 directs the functionality of the user device152, in general, and drives the wireless transmitter 220, whichbroadcasts stored identification information (e.g. a device ID 226stored in memory to which the controller 224 has access) via the antenna222. According to one embodiment, the wireless transmitter 220broadcasts the device ID 226 using the Bluetooth wireless protocol.

Bluetooth is a wireless technology that operates in a 2.4 GHz(gigahertz) short-range radio frequency band. In free space, Bluetoothapplications typically locate a Bluetooth device by calculating thedistance of the user devices 152 from the signal receivers. The distanceof the device from the receiver is closely related to the strength ofthe signal received from the device. A lower power version of standardBluetooth called Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE), in contrast, consumesbetween ½ and 1/100 the power of classic Bluetooth. BLE is optimized fordevices requiring maximum battery life, as compared to the emphasis uponhigher data transfer rates associated with classic Bluetooth. BLE has atypical broadcast range of about 100-150 feet (approximately 35-46meters).

When transmitting via BLE, the user devices 152 might send an AltBeaconcompliant BLE broadcast message every second. In an alternativeimplementation, the user devices 103 are capable of broadcasting viastandard Bluetooth. In still other alternative implementations, the userdevices 103 may broadcast via other wireless technologies such as Wi-Fi(IEEE 802.11), active RFID (radio frequency identification), or ZigBee,to list a few examples.

The distributed device 130 includes a controller 216, a wirelessreceiver 221, an antenna 222, a network interface 206, and a buildingmanagement system (BMS) element 218. The controller 216 executesfirmware instructions and, in general, sends instructions to andreceives data from the wireless receiver 221, network interface 206, andBMS element 216. The wireless receiver 221 receives via the antenna 222the broadcast device ID 226 transmitted by the user device 152. Thebroadcast device ID 226 is then sent to the control panel 116 via thenetwork interface 206 over network 111 along with signal strengthinformation including measurements of the signal strength of thewireless signals detected by the wireless receiver 221. The BMS element218 generically refers to the components of the distributed device 130that perform the functionality of the particular type of distributeddevice 130. For example, for a smoke detector 130-2, 130-4, 130-9,130-12, the BMS element 218 might include a smoke sensor, whereas for astrobe 130-1, 130-7, the BMS element 218 might include an indicatorlight.

The control panel includes a central processing unit (CPU) 202, anetwork interface 206, and a display 208. The CPU 202 executes firmwareinstructions and, in general, directs the function of the control panel116 by sending instructions and receiving signals and/or data from thedistributed devices 130 via the network interface 206, executinginstructions and retrieving data from the connected services system 102via the network interface 206, and rendering a graphical user interface(GUI) 210 on the display 208. A mapping module 212 and a user trackingmodule 214 execute on an operating system (OS) 204 that in turn executeson the CPU 202.

The mapping module 212 renders the user tracking pane 124 on the display208 of the control panel 116 based on the location informationassociated with different distributed devices and user devices of theoccupants 150 respectively detected by each of the distributed devices130. In one example, the mapping module 212 does this by receiving a mapof the building 103 from the connected services system 102 andtranslating the location information for the distributed devices 130 andoccupants 150 into icon position information indicating differentpositions with respect to the map of icons representing the distributeddevices 130 and occupants 150.

The user tracking module 214 generates location information based on thedevice IDs 226 and signal strength information received from thedistributed devices 130. In one example, the user tracking module 214matches location information associated with the distributed devices 130that received the broadcast device IDs 226 with occupant informationassociated with the device ID 226 in order to generate locationinformation for the occupant 150 using the user device 152. Thislocation information for the occupant 150 is further refined based onthe signal strength information from the distributed device 130, as therelative position of the occupant 150 with respect to the distributeddevices 130 that received the device ID 226 associated with the occupant150 is determined.

FIG. 2B is a schematic diagram showing an exemplary control panel 116,distributed device 130 and user device 152, according to anotherembodiment of the present invention. Here, the controller 216 of thedistributed device 130 does not control the wireless receiver 221, whichoperates independently from the controller 216 and sends the device ID226 and the signal strength information to the control panel 116 via anindependent connection to the network interface 206. This embodimentensures that the controller 216 is available to perform the functionsassociated with the building management system functions (e.g., smokedetection) associated with the device 130.

FIG. 2C is a schematic diagram showing an exemplary control panel 116,distributed device 130 and user device 152, according to anotherembodiment of the present invention. Here, the controller 216 of thedistributed device 130 does not control the wireless receiver 221, whichoperates entirely independently from the other components of thedistributed device 130 as an independent module. In this example, thewireless receiver 221 sends the device ID 226 and the signal strengthinformation to the control panel 116 via a wireless communications linkto a wireless network router 250 of the safety and security wired and/orwireless network 111 of the building 103. This embodiment ensures thatthe controller 216 and network 110 are fully available to perform thefunctions associated with the building management system functions(e.g., smoke detection) associated with the device 130.

FIG. 2D is a schematic diagram showing an exemplary control panel 116,distributed device 130 and user device 152, according to anotherembodiment of the present invention. Here, the user tracking module 214and the mapping module 212 executes on the connected services server 104instead of the control panel 116. In this example, the user trackingmodule 214 receives the device IDs 226 either via the control panel 116or directly from the distributed devices 130 (e.g. via the publicnetwork 114), generates the location information, and sends the locationinformation to be stored in the human resource management system 108.Similarly, the mapping module 212 retrieves the location informationfrom the human resource management system 108 and the connected servicesdatabase 106, generates the icon position information, and pushes theicon position information to the control panel 116 or to the firstresponder computing devices 162 to be presented via the user trackingpanes 124 on those devices. Both the user tracking module 214 and themapping module 212 can execute on other systems connected to the controlpanel 116 that have more computing power or using cloud computing ifeven more computing power is required.

FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram showing an exemplary connected servicesdatabase 106 and human resources management system 108.

The connected services database 106 includes a device table 302 and amap table 304.

The device table 302, which maintains information associated withdifferent distributed devices 130 of a particular building managementsystem 100, includes columns for a device ID, or unique identifier, adevice type, and location information. The location information couldrefer to information with respect to the layout of the building (e.g.floor number, room number, wing), position information with respect tofloor plans or maps of the building 103, or position information withrespect to an indoor location tracking system, among other examples.

In the illustrated example, the device table 302 lists thirteendifferent devices, including strobes 130-1, 130-7, smoke detectors130-2, 130-4, 130-9, 130-12, sounders 130-3, 130-5, 130-10, 130-11, callpoints 130-6, pull stations 130-8 and rally points 130-13, with deviceIDs ranging from 1-13, each associated with a different location fromlocation1-location13.

The map table 304 maintains information about maps for differentbuildings 103 and includes a column for a building ID and maps.

In the illustrated example, the map table 304 lists three buildings 103with building IDs ranging from 1-3, each associated with map1, map2, andmap3 respectively.

The human resource management system 108 includes an employee table 300,which maintains information associated with different occupants 150(which, in the illustrated example, are employees of entities occupyingthe building 103). The employee table 300 includes columns for employeeIDs, user information, including name, a profile picture, sex,department, and contact information, user device ID, identifying theuser device 152 that is associated with the 150, user device type, andlocation information. The location information includes historicallocation information for the occupant 150, including timestampsassociated with different locations. As with the device table 302, thelocation information could refer to information with respect to thelayout of the building (e.g. floor number, room number, wing), positioninformation with respect to floor plans or maps of the building 103, orposition information with respect to an indoor location tracking system,among other examples.

In the illustrated example, the employee table 300 lists five occupants150 with different names, profile pictures, sexes, departments, andcontact information. Each of the occupants 150 is associated with adifferent device ID for a user device 152, with the device IDs rangingfrom deviceID1 through deviceID5, including ID badges 152-1, 152-4,smart phones 152-2, wearable beacons 152-3, and smart watches 152-5.Similarly, each of the occupants 150 has an associated location history,with timestamps ranging from timestamp1-timestamp25 associated withlocations ranging from location1-13.

FIG. 4 is a sequence diagram illustrating an exemplary process by whichthe building management system 103 tracks the locations of occupants 150of the building 103 and provides location information for the occupants150 to first responders 160.

First, in step 400, the human resource management system 108 ispopulated with user information for occupants 150 of the building 103and user device information for user devices 152 of the occupants 150.

Then, in step 402, the user devices 152 continually broadcastidentification information (such as the device ID 226).

In step 404, nearby distributed devices 130 receive the identificationinformation and send it to the control panel 406 along with signalstrength information for the wireless signals in which the broadcast IDinformation was encoded.

In step 408, the control panel 116 sends device ID information for thedistributed devices 130 that received the broadcast identificationinformation from the user devices 152 to the connected services database106. In step 410, the connected services database 106 returns locationinformation associated with the distributed devices 130 on whichdistributed device received the broadcast identification information.

In step 412, location information indicating the location of theoccupant 150 based on the location of the distributed device 130 thatreceived the broadcast identification information and based on thesignal strength information is generated and sent to be stored on thehuman resource management system 108 along with the identificationinformation that was received for the user device 152 and timeinformation (e.g. a timestamp). In step 414, the human resourcemanagement system 108 looks up the occupant 152 (for example, in theemployee table 300) based on the identification information from theuser device 152. The human resources management system 108 then storesthe location information for the occupant 150 and the time informationassociated with the occupant 150.

In step 416, the control panel 116 continually retrieves locationinformation and map information from the connected services database106. Similarly, in step 418, the control panel 116 continually retrievesuser information and location information from the human resourcemanagement system 108.

In step 420, the recent locations of occupants 150 of the building 103are displayed based on the user information and the location informationfor the occupants 150 and the location information for the distributeddevices 130. In one example, the control panel 116 renders on thedisplay 208 of the control panel 116 a map of the building 103 withicons representing the occupants 150 of the building in differentpositions with respect to the map based on the location information forthe occupants 150.

FIG. 5 is an illustration of an exemplary user tracking pane 124. In theillustrated example, the user tracking pane 124 is part of the GUI 210rendered on the touchscreen display 208 of the control panel 116. Inother examples, the user tracking pane 124 can be displayed by firstresponder computing devices 162.

The user tracking pane 124 includes a background map image 500, which isgenerated based on map information retrieved from the connected servicesdatabase 106, for example. In general, overlaid on the background mapimage 500 are graphical elements such as icons, virtual buttons, textualinformation, and menus for presenting information and receiving input.Selection of the icons, for example, is indicated by the touchscreendisplay 208 detecting contact (for example, from a user's finger) inregions of the touchscreen display 208 containing the icons. Other inputis indicated by the touchscreen display 208 detecting other gesturessuch as dragging or swiping.

More specifically, the user tracking pane 124 includes distributeddevice icons 502 and occupant icons 504.

The distributed device icons 502 represent distributed devices 130 andare overlaid on the background map image 500 in different positions withrespect to the background map image 500 based on the locationinformation for the distributed devices 130 from the connected servicesdatabase 106. The distributed device icons 502 include textualinformation based on the device information from the connected servicedatabase 106 such as the device ID from the devices table 302.

Similarly, the occupant icons 504 represent different occupants 150 ofthe building 103 and are overlaid on the background map image 500 indifferent positions with respect to the background map image 500 basedon the location information for the occupants 150 from the humanresource management system 108. The occupant icons 504 include graphicaldepictions of individuals that vary in orientation and shape based oninformation from the employee table 300 of the human resource managementsystem 108. For example, some of the occupant icons 504 have maleshapes, while others have female shapes based on the user informationstored in the employee table 300. Similarly, the orientation of theoccupant icons 504 is based on the location information for the occupant150. For example, the occupant icons 504 appear to be orientated in adirection that the different occupants 150 are determined to be movingbased on the location information for the occupants 150.

The user tracking pane 124 also includes a rally status box 506, whichis a text box containing textual rally status information indicating thenumber of occupants 150 who are determined to be located at the rallypoint 130-13 and the number of occupants 150 who are determined to belocated within the building 103.

In the illustrated example, occupant icon 504-1 represents a maleoccupant 150-1. The position of the occupant icon 504-1 indicates thatthe occupant 150-1 is located in proximity to the smoke detector 130-1represented by distributed device icon 502-2 and the sounder 130-3represented by distributed device icon 502-3. The orientation of theoccupant icon 504-1 indicates that the occupant 150-1 might be movingtoward the strobe 130-1 represented by distributed device icon 502-1 andthe rally point 130-13 represented by the distributed device icon502-13.

Similarly, occupant icon 504-2 represents a male occupant 150-2. Theposition of the occupant icon 504-2 indicates that the occupant 150-2 islocated in proximity to the smoke detector 130-9 represented bydistributed device icon 502-9 and the strobe 130-7 represented bydistributed device icon 502-7. The orientation of the occupant icon504-2 indicates that the occupant 150-2 might be moving toward the smokedetector 130-9.

Similarly, occupant icon 504-3 represents a female occupant 150-3. Theposition of the occupant icon 504-3 indicates that the occupant 150-3 islocated in proximity to the smoke detector 130-12 represented bydistributed device icon 502-12 and the sounder 130-11 represented bydistributed device icon 502-11. The orientation of the occupant icon504-3 indicates that the occupant 150-3 might be moving away from thesounder 130-11 and the smoke detector 130-13.

Similarly, occupant icons 504-4 and 504-5 represent male and femaleoccupants 150-4 and 150-5 respectively. The position of the occupanticons 504-4, 504-5 indicates that the occupants 150-4, 150-5 are locatedin proximity to the rally point 130-13.

The rally status box 506 indicates that two occupants 150 have arrivedat the rally point 130-13, while three occupants 150 remain in thebuilding 103.

FIG. 6 is an illustration of the user tracking pane 124 showing how userinformation pertaining to the occupants 150 is displayed in response toselection of occupant icons 504. In the illustrated example, theoccupant icon 504-1 has been selected (e.g. by the touchscreen display208 detecting contact within a region of the display 208 containing theoccupant icon 504-1). In response, a user information box 508 isdisplayed. The user information box 508 is a graphical elementcontaining images and textual information representing the userinformation from the employee table 300 of the human resource managementsystem 108.

In this way, information about occupants 150 of the building 103,including location information representing the occupants' 150 currentor recent location, is presented to first responders 160 duringemergency and/or training events.

While this invention has been particularly shown and described withreferences to preferred embodiments thereof, it will be understood bythose skilled in the art that various changes in form and details may bemade therein without departing from the scope of the inventionencompassed by the appended claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A building management system for a premises, thesystem comprising: distributed devices comprising wireless receivers forreceiving broadcast identification information from user devices,wherein one or more of the distributed devices are positioned atpredetermined rally points of the premises where occupants of thepremises are instructed and/or expected to meet during emergency and/ortraining events; and a control panel for generating location informationbased on the identification information received by the distributeddevices and presenting the location information for first responders onone or more displays, wherein the control panel presents for firstresponders rally status information for the emergency and/or trainingevents.
 2. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the buildingmanagement system is a fire alarm, security, building automation and/oraccess control system.
 3. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein theuser devices include mobile computing devices, identification badges,and/or wearable beacons.
 4. The system as claimed in claim 1, whereinlocation information for users of the user devices is generated bymatching location information associated with the distributed devicesthat received the broadcast identification information with userinformation associated with the identification information.
 5. Thesystem as claimed in claim 1, wherein the one or more displays includedisplays that are integral with the control panel.
 6. The system asclaimed in claim 1, wherein the one or more displays include displays ofcomputing devices connected to the building management system via aconnected services system.
 7. The system as claimed in claim 1, whereinthe control panel presents for first responders user informationassociated with users of the user devices.
 8. The system as claimed inclaim 1, wherein the building management system is a fire alarm system,intrusion system and/or building automation system installed within thepremises.
 9. The system as claimed in claim 8, wherein the control paneldirects functionality of the building management system.
 10. The systemas claimed in claim 9, wherein the control panel directs thefunctionality of the building management system by determining anddisplaying operational statuses of and/or sensor data from thedistributed devices.
 11. The system as claimed in claim 9, wherein thecontrol panel directs the functionality of the building managementsystem by sending instructions to the distributed devices to performfunctions of the building management system.
 12. The system as claimedin claim 8, wherein the distributed devices are connected to the controlpanel via a wired and/or wireless safety and security network of thepremises and are slave devices of the control panel.
 13. The system asclaimed in claim 8, wherein the distributed devices include buildingmanagement system elements, which perform functions of the buildingmanagement system.
 14. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein thecontrol panel presents the rally status information by indicating anumber of occupants that are determined to be located at thepredetermined rally points.
 15. The system as claimed in claim 14,wherein the predetermined rally points are designated safe areas thatare a distance from the premises.
 16. A building management system for apremises, the system comprising: distributed devices comprising wirelessreceivers for receiving broadcast identification information from userdevices; and a control panel for generating location information basedon the identification information received by the distributed devicesand presenting the location information for first responders on one ormore displays, wherein the control panel presents the locationinformation by displaying a map of the premises with graphical elementsrepresenting users of the user devices overlaid on the map in differentpositions with respect to the map based on the location information. 17.A method of operation of a building management system for a premises,the method comprising: distributed devices of the building managementsystem receiving broadcast identification information from user devicesvia wireless receivers of the distributed devices, wherein one or moredistributed devices are positioned at predetermined rally points of thepremises where occupants of the premises are instructed and/or expectedto meet during emergency and/or training events; generating locationinformation based on the identification information received by thedistributed devices and presenting the location information for firstresponders on one or more displays; and presenting for first respondersrally status information for the emergency and/or training events. 18.The method as claimed in claim 17, wherein the building managementsystem is a fire alarm, security, building automation and/or accesscontrol system.
 19. The method as claimed in claim 17, wherein the userdevices include mobile computing devices, identification badges, and/orwearable beacons.
 20. The method as claimed in claim 17, furthercomprising generating location information for users of the user devicesby matching location information associated with the distributed devicesthat received the broadcast identification information with userinformation associated with the identification information.
 21. Themethod as claimed in claim 17, further comprising presenting thelocation information on displays that are integral with a control panelof the building management system.
 22. The method as claimed in claim17, further comprising presenting the location information on displaysof computing devices connected to the building management system via aconnected services system.
 23. The method as claimed in claim 17,further comprising presenting for first responders user informationassociated with users of the user devices.
 24. A method of operation ofa building management system for a premises, the method comprising:distributed devices of the building management system receivingbroadcast identification information from user devices via wirelessreceivers of the distributed devices; and generating locationinformation based on the identification information received by thedistributed devices and presenting the location information for firstresponders on one or more displays, further comprising presenting thelocation information by displaying a map of the premises with graphicalelements representing users of the user devices overlaid on the map indifferent positions with respect to the map based on the locationinformation.